The manufacture and commercial distribution of cigarettes, both filter and nonfilter types, give rise to significant quantities of products which for various reasons do not reach the consumer. Since the tobacco contained in these products is a costly commodity and is, in most instances, in satisfactory condition for reuse in the manufacture of cigarettes, apparatus has been developed for recovering tobacco from cigarettes so that it may be subsequently used again in the manufacture of smoking products.
Apparatus disclosed in the prior art for recovering cut tobacco filler from cigarettes takes a variety of forms due to the varying forms of the products which are designated for the reclaiming operation. For example, each time a cigarette making machine is started up a substantial length of uncut tobacco rod (usually referred to as "long ends") is formed before all phases of the making process become fully operational. Manufactured cigarettes may also be rejected by the inspection devices on the making machine when defects such as imperfect seam seals on the cigarette paper or tipping paper are detected.
Defects in packaging may also lead to the recovery of cigarettes from packs and/or cartons of cigarettes. Thus, the prior art discloses apparatus for sorting and opening packs of cigarettes as well as for separating tobacco from paper and the filter tips of filter cigarettes.
One negative feature that is inherent in most methods for reclaiming tobacco from cigarettes is that the particle sizes of the cut tobacco are reduced due to mechanical abrasion associated with the reclaiming process. Therefore, all of the reclaimed tobacco is generally used in the manufacture of reconstituted tobacco sheets which are cut or shredded before being returned to the cigarette manufacturing operation. The preparation and use of reconstituted tobacco have been practiced in the tobacco industry for many years but it has been necessary to carry out a reconstituted tobacco manufacturing operation on a relatively large scale to make it economically attractive. This, in turn, has necessitated a tobacco reclaiming operation that is also relatively large scale in nature. Hence, it has been customary in the industry to collect reject cigarettes, "long ends" and defective packages of cigarettes for reclaiming in one centralized location. That practice has resulted in another negative feature that is inherent in present reclaiming methods, namely, the partial loss of brand integrity. Each brand of cigarettes produced by a manufacturer has a particular blend of tobaccos and flavoring materials applied to the tobacco. The processing of different brands of cigarettes in a tobacco reclaiming operation necessarily results, therefore, in a combination of tobacco materials that reflect different flavor formulations and tobacco blend formulations. To the extent that such reclaimed materials are returned and used in the manufacture of a given brand of cigarette, even if in the form of reconstituted tobacco, that use comprises the integrity of that brand's unique smoking characteristics.